Two South Canterbury men — Allan Kerr of Fairlie and Geoff Lienert of Waimate — have each been awarded a Queen’s Service Medal (QSM) in the New Year Honours list. This week, Courier reporter Connor Haley talks to Mr Kerr, a renowned choral character who received his award for services to music.
Music has been a part of Allan Kerr’s life for as long as he can remember.
Now, having dedicated over 60 years to it, Mr Kerr has been rewarded with a QSM for indulging, teaching and sharing his passion.
He said it was ‘‘rather nice‘‘ to learn he was receiving such a prestigious award.
‘‘You instantly think maybe there are people a little more deserving, but it was nice to look back and think, I actually have been quite involved and it was nice to know that someone thought you did something worthwhile.’’
Mr Kerr grew up in Alexandra, and said he remembered always being surrounded by music.
‘‘Dad was a good singer. So was Mum, she played the piano a bit. And grandma before her was very keen on music, so it was always around.
‘‘I spent a couple of years learning the piano, badly, as a kid, I was very reluctant.’’
In 1961, after weighing up several different career options, he settled on teachers’ college, and his passion for music rose to a crescendo.
‘‘The music at college was inspiring. You had the best part of 1000 people singing together. It was absolutely wonderful.
‘‘One of the things I made a special study of at teachers’ college was music — I thoroughly enjoyed it.’’
Mr Kerr landed his first teaching job in Invercargill at Surrey Park School in 1963.
It was there he would start the first of his many choirs.
Over the next 60 years he would go on to establish different school choirs all over the South Island, from Invercargill all the way to Reefton.
He also organised two music festivals — one while he was in Kurow, and another while he was at a sole-charge school on the West Coast.
He said it had been one of his biggest joys seeing children tackling their fears and getting on stage to perform.
‘‘Some of them hated it the first time — it scared the pants off them of course, but they would end up enjoying it in the end.’’
In 1971 he landed a job at a new form 1-7 school starting in Fairlie.
At Fairlie High School (now Mackenzie College) he took charge of music, sport and physical education.
‘‘I was a fairly busy boy for a few years trying to get things established.’’
He held the role for more than 20 years, and in that time set up a choir and played a key part in establishing the school’s orchestra.
He was also instrumental in starting up the Young Performers Concert, which has run for the last 30 years.
Mr Kerr said it was sad to see that music was not as much a core subject as it had been.
‘‘When you leave school it is so important that you have interests, and it’s particularly important if you live in a little country area, because you will leave at some stage.
‘‘When you go to another place if you can join a music group or even a cricket team you have a group of people and I think that is so important.
‘‘Music and sport should be a strong part of any curriculum, because [they] really [aid] the social development of people.’’
Musical productions have played a big part in Mr Kerr’s life in Fairlie.
He started with the school productions every two years, and then in the intervening years he would be the musical director for the district’s productions — and if he was not, he was in them.
After retiring from teaching, he began conducting the Midland Choir in Timaru, and has done so for the last 20 years.
They run a charity fundraising concert every year.
He said he got a great thrill out of helping others.
‘‘One is privileged to have the time to give something back.
‘‘I grew up in an age where you were expected to do a bit of voluntary work — you just do stuff, it’s never a hardship.’’
He said he planned to continue conducting and performing for as long as he could.
‘‘I have recruited someone younger to eventually take over, but I still thoroughly enjoy it, and occasionally when they require an 80-year-old as part of a musical here, I just might be talked into . . .that as well.’’
Mr Kerr will be attending the Christchurch honours ceremony in March and is looking forward to having his wife, two daughters and grandson there.
